fracturing fluid

A new proppant exhibits a neutrally wet surface, which does not have a preferential affinity for oil, gas, or water and therefore will not promote the preferential entrapment of any phase within the proppant pack. Bitumen is so viscous that the ultraheavy crude oil is often compared to peanut butter.

Driven by a recovery in well completions and increased proppant loading per well, the market for raw fracturing sand is expected to grow by more than 4% annually through 2021, an industry research study says. Crude oil production in the United States is expected to approach 10 million B/D in 2018 and surpass a previous high achieved in 1970, according to the latest US EIA forecast. A global energy model estimates the long-term energy mix, including solids, liquids, and gases, that will satisfy energy demand to the year 2040.

Electromagnetic images can show where water flows during a hydraulic fracture. A test in the Anadarko Basin showed a fault there was a bigger hazard than expected. Electromagnetic (EM) reservoir imaging is likely to get more attention from operators thanks to a collaboration between Halliburton and a leader in this emerging technology, GroundMetrics.

Prompted by concerns about possible leaching from phenolic novolac resin-coated proppants (RCPs) during operations, Fairmount Santrol conducted analysis that showed no leaching of free formaldehyde or free phenol from its phenolic novolac RCPs. This paper offers an alternative explanation for the early boundary-dominated flow related to dissolution of salt-sealed natural fractures in the shale. This paper introduces a new carbon dioxide (CO2) -hybrid fracturing-fluid design that intends to improve production from ultratight reservoirs and reduces freshwater usage.

Using drilling data and a downhole acoustic signal, developers aim to assess unconventional fracture networks in real time and give engineers ability to customize each stage. Techniques for well-abandonment log evaluations have been studied in the Gulf of Mexico since 2012. The new methods described in this paper consist of adding nuclear sensors to supplement the acoustic measurements and introduce novel processing methods. Since 2007, an operator in Nigeria has registered a significant increase of oil-spill events caused by sabotage and oil-theft activities. The technology presented here allows detecting and locating leaks taking place at a distance from the sensor of up to 35 km.

The evolution of hydraulic fracturing is a long and circuitous one that deserves examination. Engineering and completions leaders from Liberty Oilfield Services did just that, authoring a paper that encapsulates the high points in the development of the groundbreaking completions practice. Producers in Texas have claimed an economic victory with their transition to local sands that they once avoided using in horizontal wells due to their low-quality. Driven by a recovery in well completions and increased proppant loading per well, the market for raw fracturing sand is expected to grow by more than 4% annually through 2021, an industry research study says. Permian Basin producer Callon Petroleum is attributing its data-driven approach to a routine completions practice to improved proppant placement and higher oil production.

The world’s largest oil producer has awarded $18 billion in engineering, procurement, and construction contracts as part of its Marjan and Berri expansion projects. The deal will bolster Arabian Drilling Company’s fleet to 67 rigs across the Middle East and North Africa. Ghawar vs. Permian Basin: Is There Even a Comparison? While some try to put the two enormous oil producers toe-to-toe, the best thing to do might be to understand why they are different. Take a quick look at some of the data points shaping upstream headlines and the movement of oil supplies around the world.

Hydraulic fracturing solutions use a gelling agent known as guar gum to transport proppant. Flowback water can have guar gum concentrations has high as 1% by volume creating treatment challenges prior to reuse or disposal. In this second article of a series covering water management in hydraulic fracturing (HF) in unconventional resources, the properties and characteristics of the flowback fluids are discussed, together with the general categories of technologies that are best suited to treat them.

Twelve organizations—universities and private technology companies—will conduct research and development on emerging shale plays and technologies covering everything from digital pressure-sensing to smart microchip proppant. It is no secret that drilling fluid is crucial in drilling operations. The main function of drilling fluids is to transport drill cuttings from the bottom of the hole up to the surface. Drill cuttings then will be separated on the surface before being recycled back for further drilling. Drilling fluid is subjected to extreme pressure and temperature, and its properties such as viscosity are affected strongly by pressure and temperature.

Content of PetroWiki is intended for personal use only and to supplement, not replace, engineering judgment. SPE disclaims any and all liability for your use of such content. A high quality, widely available mined sand used for gravel packing and fracture proppant.